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Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef paid a visit to a Boys & Girls Club in Sacramento on June 15, delivering a $5,000 donation and playing a little pool.

The check came from Valley Vision, an independent, nonprofit “action tank” for research and problem-solving aimed at improving the region’s quality of life.

Vanderhoef received a 2009 Legacy of Leadership Award from Valley Vision, and with the award came $5,000 for him to give to the nonprofit organization of his choice, to help build the next generation of leadership. “It’s only a small amount of money,” Vanderhoef told Boys & Girls Club officials, “but I couldn’t think of a better place.”

He offered a simple explanation for his support of the club: “I like what they do.”

Keeping children in school

Vanderhoef delivered the check to the Boys & Girls Club’s Teichert Branch. He met there with Kimberly Williams, a �ٺ���Ƶ alumna who serves as chief executive officer of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Sacramento.

She said the chancellor’s donation would be used for educational programs throughout the organization. It serves some 8,000 children a year at two club buildings (the Teichert Branch in south Sacramento and the Raley Branch in downtown Sacramento) and seven elementary schools.

“Our goal is to keep children in school, to see them receive their high school diplomas, and then move on to higher education, vocational school or any program where they can become caring, responsible and productive citizens,” said Williams, who graduated from �ٺ���Ƶ in 1993 with a bachelor of science degree in human development.

Williams gave Vanderhoef a tour of the Teichert Branch, showing off the computer room, game room, classroom, gym and kitchen.

Former �ٺ���Ƶ Foundation board member Fred Teichert joined the tour. He is executive director of the Teichert Foundation, backed by the Teichert construction companies, which provided major funding to the Boys & Girls Clubs.

Midway through the tour, more than a dozen children gathered in the game room for the check presentation, after which they responded in unison: “Thank you, Mister Chancellor!”

Valley Vision gave out its 2009 Legacy of Leadership Awards during a May 21 banquet called the Legacy Feast. The organization presented three awards corresponding to Valley Vision’s three-pronged focus: economic and environmental issues and social equity.

Vanderhoef’s award recognized his efforts on behalf of the region’s economy during his 15 years as chancellor. In a news release, Valley Vision noted some of what �ٺ���Ƶ has accomplished during Vanderhoef’s 15 years as chancellor.

• Growth in extramural funding, from $169.1 million to $586 million a year.

• A 10th-place ranking, among public universities, in research funding from the National Science Foundation.

• Growth in private gifts, from $40 million to more than $200 million a year, with more than $1 billion cumulatively raised in support of programs.

* A gain of 4 million square feet in classroom, lab, clinical and office space.

* The transformation of the ailing Sacramento County Hospital into an academically distinguished and financially sound regional medical center.

* Distinctive strides in recruiting a diverse and accomplished faculty and student body.

Best qualities of regional leadership

The other legacy award recipients for 2009:

• Shawn Harrison, executive director of Soil Born Farms, for leadership on environmental issues.

• Doni Blumenstock, executive director of the American Leadership Forum, Mountain Valley Chapter, for leadership in social equity.

AT&T’s Tim Ray, awards chairman and Valley Vision board member, said this about the recipients: “We felt we came up with individuals who exemplify the best qualities of regional leadership — people who cross boundaries to solve problems, envision new possibilities, and have worked collaboratively and resourcefully to make an impact.”

Fun and games

During his tour of the Boys & Girls Club, Vanderhoef stopped twice to play pool — once in the teen room, joining 14-year-old Isaiah Brinkley at the table, and once in the game room, where he took turns shooting pool with Baylei Yancey, 9.

Vanderhoef was quite the pool player as a young man — having learned how to play when he was around 11 years old, in South Milwaukee, Wis., though not at a Boys & Girls Club.

At some point he decided to become a scientist, going into plant biology and eventually becoming a professor and a chancellor.

He never looked back. In fact, Sacramento Magazine asked him in 2006 to say a few words about the best decision he ever made: “To get out of the pool hall and into the classroom.”

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Credits

Text by Dave Jones
Photos by José Luis Villegas